{"id":250,"date":"2026-02-18T16:50:25","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T11:20:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/?p=250"},"modified":"2026-08-11T08:36:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T03:06:00","slug":"upsc-psir-optional-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/upsc-psir-optional-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"UPSC PSIR Optional 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
UPSC Civil Services · Mains · PSIR Optional<\/span><\/p>\n

UPSC PSIR Optional 2017 — Question Paper<\/h1>\n

The complete paper as UPSC set it, Paper I and Paper II. Tap a question to open its own page — the flow snapshot showing how the answer moves, and the handwritten answer.<\/p>\n

56<\/b> questions<\/span>Paper I & Paper II<\/span><\/div>\n
2025<\/a>2024<\/a>2023<\/a>2022<\/a>2021<\/a>2020<\/a>2019<\/a>2018<\/a>2017<\/span>2016<\/a>2015<\/a>PYQ Finder →<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
Paper<\/span>I<\/b><\/div>\n
\n
1<\/span><\/p>\n

Comment on the following in about 150 words: (50 marks)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>According to Sri Aurobindo. Swaraj is a necessary condition for India to accomplish its destined goal.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Neo-Liberal perspective of state<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

c<\/span>Post-Modernism<\/span>10 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

d<\/span>Eco-Feminism<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>e<\/span>Hobbesian notion of Political Obligation<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
2<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Rawls\u2019 theory of justice is both contractual and distributive. Examine.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Everywhere, inequality is a cause of revolution \u2013 Aristotle. Comment.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Define Socialism. Discuss the salient features of Fabian Socialism.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>What do you understand by Multiculturalism? Discuss Bhikhu Parekh\u2019s view on Multiculturalism.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Deliberative democracy does not have its salience without participation and participatory democracy does not have its credence without deliberations. Comment.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Differentiate between Freedom and Liberty. Discuss Marx\u2019s notion of freedom.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Political democracy could not last unless social democracy lay at its base \u2013 B.R. Ambedkar. Comment.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Write a brief note on The End of History debate.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>What do you understand by the notion of Statecraft? Discuss the theory of statecraft as given by Kautilya.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
5<\/span><\/p>\n

Comment on the following in 150 words: (50 marks)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>The success of Mahatma Gandhi lay in transforming both political and non-political movements into a unified nationalist movement.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Right to privacy is an intrinsic part of the right to life.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Indian federation has moved from cooperative federation to competitive federation.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>d<\/span>State subvention\/funding may be an effective instrument in strengthening electoral democracy in India.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>e<\/span>In the post-liberalization era, Indian politics is moving from ascriptive politics to developmental politics.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
6<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Differentiate parliamentary supremacy from parliamentary sovereignty. Would you consider the Indian Parliament as a Sovereign Parliament? Examine.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Has the 73rd Constitutional Amendment empowered women in panchayats in India? Discuss<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Religion is still an important factor in Indian politics. Discuss.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
7<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
a<\/span>India has moved from \u2018one-party dominant system\u2019 to \u2018one-party led coalition\u2019. Discuss.<\/span>20 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

b<\/span>How is the President of India elected? Outline the salient characteristics of the electoral college of the Indian President.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Examine the role of the National Commission for Minorities in preserving, promoting and protecting the rights of minorities in India.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
8<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Judiciary has acquired the role of both, a legislature and an executive in recent years. Examine with suitable examples.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>What do you understand by Green Revolution? Do you think that a Second Green Revolution is needed to adequately address the agrarian challenges in contemporary India? Examine.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Differentiate Moderate Nationalism from Extremist\/Militant Nationalism in terms of their objectives and means.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/section>\n

\n
Paper<\/span>II<\/b><\/div>\n
\n
1<\/span><\/p>\n

Answer the following in 150 words: (50 marks)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Explain the Political-Sociological Approach in the field of comparative politics and discuss its limitations.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>Critically examine the Globalisation in the past 25 years from the perspectives of the Western world.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Examine the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) movement in developed societies and how it is affecting the political participation in developing societies.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

d<\/span>American President Donald Trump\u2019s proposal to withdraw from the \u2018NAFTA\u2019 would bring unforeseen consequences to the regionalisation of world politics. Elaborate.<\/span>10 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

e<\/span>Give an assessment of the Feminist critique of contemporary global issues.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
2<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
a<\/span>Is Realist Approach the best method to understand International Relations? Examine this in context of Classical Realism.<\/span>20 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

b<\/span>How has the development of Global Capitalism changed the nature of socialist economies and developing societies?<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Discuss the changing nature of modern state with reference to transnational actors.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
a<\/span>\u201cThe development of advanced missile technology and nuclear threat by North Korea has challenged the American hegemony in South-East Asia.\u201d Evaluate the above statement in the context of recent developments in the region.<\/span>20 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

b<\/span>Do you endorse the view that the end of Bipolarity and the rise of multiple regional organisations has made Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) more or less irrelevant?<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>Do you agree with the view that despite the limitations in the functioning of the UN, it has distinguished and unique achievements to its credit?<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>The recent move of USA to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement is a setback in the consensus achieved on protecting the world environment. In this context, assess the future prospectives on climate control.?<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>How has \u2018BREXIT\u2019 affected the regionalisation process initiated by European Union and what could be its likely impacts in the regionalisation process of world politics?<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

c<\/span>Examine the World Systems Approach as developed by Immanuel Wallerstein.<\/span>15 marks<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
5<\/span><\/p>\n

Answer the following in 150 words: (50 marks)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Examine the Indian National Movement and geographical location of India as determinants of India\u2019s foreign policy.<\/span>10 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

b<\/span>What are the impediments in the development of South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA)?<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>\u201cThe Treaty of Perpetual Peace and Friendship between India and Bhutan needs to be revised with more pragmatic, realistic obligations and responsibilities.\u201d Comment.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>d<\/span>\u201cIndia has been the largest and consistent country contributing to the UN peacekeepers worldwide.\u201d Examine India\u2019s role in this perspective.<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>e<\/span>Has the recent Indo-Israeli relationships given a new dynamics to India\u2019s stand on Palestinian statehood?<\/span>10 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
6<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>Suggest measures so that India\u2019s partnership with Africa becomes a true symbol of South-South Cooperation, delivering clear-cut economic and political dividends to both sides of the equation.<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>b<\/span>\u201cDespite the differences between India and Pakistan on various issues, Indus Water Treaty has stood the test of times.\u201d In the light of this statement, discuss the recent developments over this issue.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

c<\/span>Analyse the stalled progress of Doha Round of WTO negotiations over the differences between the developed and the developing countries.<\/span>15 marks<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
7<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
a<\/span>How is the \u2018Belt and Road Initiative\u2019 of China going to affect India-China relations?<\/span>20 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

b<\/span>The recent differences between India and Russia are the result of misconceptions than facts. Elucidate.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a>c<\/span>\u2018Uniting for Consensus\u2019 also known as \u2018Coffee Club\u2019 has opposed the claims of India and other countries over permanent membership of the UN Security Council. Point out their major objections.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n

\n
8<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

a<\/span>The natural behaviour of India and the United States is likely to serve each other\u2019s interests. Hence, a deliberate strategy of dovetailing their efforts will obviously benefit both. Elaborate.?<\/span>20 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

b<\/span>Do you subscribe to the idea that in the new evolving Asian dynamics, Japan and India have not only moved closer in economic cooperation, but also in strategic partnership?<\/span>15 marks<\/span><\/div>\n

c<\/span>The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has failed to achieve the ultimate objective of Global Nuclear Disarmament. Discuss the deficiency in provision of NP\u0422.<\/span>15 marks<\/span>Answer →<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/section>\n

Every linked question opens its own page in the PSIR PYQ Vault<\/a> — a flow snapshot showing how the answer moves, and the handwritten answer itself. To search across all ten years by year, marks or syllabus topic, use the PYQ Finder<\/a>.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UPSC Civil Services · Mains · PSIR Optional UPSC PSIR Optional 2017 — Question Paper The complete paper as UPSC set it, Paper I and Paper II. Tap a question to open its own page — the flow snapshot showing how the answer moves, and the handwritten answer. 56 questionsPaper I & Paper II 20252024202320222021202020192018201720162015PYQ […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"fx_brief_v2":"","fx_brief_issue":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-250","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pyqs"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=250"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3429,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/250\/revisions\/3429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=250"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}